Planting Garlic in January? Here's How to Do It Successfully

Planting garlic in January? It may sound strange, but it is possible! With the right conditions and a bit of knowledge, you can successfully plant garlic late into the winter season.

It all starts with knowing when to plant. While some people prefer planting their garlic in October or November, others have had success planting as late as mid-January. Jeff from Virginia Beach has been picking up different varieties at the flower show there and planting them immediately for years without seeing much difference between them and those planted earlier in the year. The key is having a warm early winter that will allow the tops of the garlic to grow tall before being hit by cold temperatures later on.

So what happens if you do decide to plant garlic this late? Keith from Canada shared his experience, saying he usually has three feet of snow on frozen ground which makes it difficult to dig and plant. However, as long as you can manage to get into the soil, you should be able to plant your cloves.

Once your garlic is planted, how can you protect it during the winter months? Soilsniffer suggests using straw or mulch around it, or even just covering it with a blanket. You could also use pine needles or leaves like J did. If you don't have any of these materials available, dirt-like compost can also work well for burying your cloves.

Ultimately, planting garlic in January is a risk worth taking if you have extra cloves lying around. Even if your garlic does not survive the cold weather, you won't have lost too much money or time since you were only working with what was left over from previous harvests. As long as you keep an eye on your crop and make sure it's covered up during extreme weather conditions, there's no reason why your garlic shouldn't thrive!